MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AID TRAINING: EVIDENCE OF ITS EFFECTIVENESS FOR MENTAL HEALTH PROMOTION AMONG OLDER ADULTS

Abstract Background About 15% of adults aged 60 and over have a mental health disorder. However, stigma and lack of knowledge of mental health resources act as barriers for them to seek professional help. Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an evidence-based program that teaches participants how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders. The Older Adults version of this training focuses on the unique experiences and needs of older adults. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) funded MHFA training program among older adults. Method: Data were collected from MHFA training sessions delivered to 27 staff and 36 residents at two assisted living facilities from January to March 2023. A quasi-experimental, pre-post design was used. Two outcomes mental health literacy and stigma were measured at the pretest, posttest, and 4 months after the the training. A paired sample t-test was performed to test the differences between the pre- and post-test. Results Statistically significant improvements in self-confidence in promoting help-seeking and reduction in stigmatizing attitudes were observed among participants in post-tests and 4-month tests. Participants reported increased knowledge in how to provide initial support to someone who may be mental health crisis and help connect them to the appropriate care. Conclusion Results indicate MHFA is likely to improve mental health awareness and reduce stigma among older adults. This study adds new evidence to the literature on the MHFA program’s effectiveness among older adults and their caregivers.


FAMILY QUIZZING BEHAVIOR DURING IN-HOME DEMENTIA CARE: A SEQUENTIAL BEHAVIORAL ANALYSIS WITH VIDEO CASE STUDIES
Carissa Coleman 1 , Paige Wilson 2 , and Kristine Williams 3 , 1. University of Kansas, Kansas City, Kansas, United States, 2. The University of Kansas,West Palm Beach,Florida,United States,3. University of Kansas Medical Center,Kansas City,Kansas,United States Quizzing is an understudied communication behavior used by care partners during in-home dementia care interactions.The aim of this study was to characterize and describe the behavior, identify types, characterize care situations, and determine how people living with dementia react to quizzing.Forty video observations of in-home interactions were coded to determine relationships between care partner quizzing and the person with dementia's reactions and analyzed using sequential behavioral analysis.Ten case studies with high instances of quizzing were examined for interpersonal context.Quizzing was defined as a series of rapid questions by the care partner that most often appeared to test the memory or knowledge of the person with dementia.Instances of quizzing that included long-term and short-term memory checks were most likely to elicit a negative reaction from the person with dementia (resistiveness, distress, and apathy).Long-term memory check always preceded resistiveness and distress (CP=1.0)and apathy preceded long-term memory check short-term memory check (CP = 0.71, 0.21).Quizzing used for distraction or reminiscing appeared to elicit positive responses from the person with dementia.Distraction and mutual reminiscing always followed cooperation (CP=1.0).Case study results indicated the care partners seemed to be testing the abilities of the person with dementia; possibly to alleviate or reverse dementia symptoms.Additional research is warranted to understand the use of quizzing during in-home care.The use of behavioral coding, sequential analysis, and case study examination can provide evidence of communication best practices to develop communication training for dementia care dyads.

MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AID TRAINING: EVIDENCE OF ITS EFFECTIVENESS FOR MENTAL HEALTH PROMOTION AMONG OLDER ADULTS Iftekhar Amin, University of North Texas at Dallas, Dallas, Texas, United States
Background: About 15% of adults aged 60 and over have a mental health disorder.However, stigma and lack of knowledge of mental health resources act as barriers for them to seek professional help.Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an evidence-based program that teaches participants how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders.The Older Adults version of this training focuses on the unique experiences and needs of older adults.This study evaluated the effectiveness of a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) funded MHFA training program among older adults.Method: Data were collected from MHFA training sessions delivered to 27 staff and 36 residents at two assisted living facilities from January to March 2023.A quasi-experimental, pre-post design was used.Two outcomes mental health literacy and stigma were measured at the pretest, posttest, and 4 months after the the training.A paired sample t-test was performed to test the differences between the pre-and post-test.
Results: Statistically significant improvements in self-confidence in promoting help-seeking and reduction in stigmatizing attitudes were observed among participants in post-tests and 4-month tests.Participants reported increased knowledge in how to provide initial support to someone who may be mental health crisis and help connect them to the appropriate care.

Conclusion:
Results indicate MHFA is likely to improve mental health awareness and reduce stigma among older adults.This study adds new evidence to the literature on the MHFA program's effectiveness among older adults and their caregivers.

MINORITY AND DIVERSE POPULATIONS (PAPERS) I
Abstract citation ID: igad104.0993

A POINT OF NO RETURN: A QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS ON RETURN MIGRATION AND AGING OF JAPANESE INDIVIDUALS LIVING IN NEW YORK
Itsuko Toyama 1 , and Taeko Nakashima 2 , 1.St. Andrew's University, Osaka, Kyoto, Japan, 2. Nihon Fukushi University, Mihama, Aichi, Japan Our previous quantitative research studies have revealed that many older Japanese individuals living in overseas communities maintain hope of receiving culture-oriented care or harbor aspirations of returning to Japan to live out their final days.In this study, we analyzed the qualitative data of a free-answer question on anxieties about aging from a quantitative research study on older Japanese individuals living in Greater New York in 2018.We aimed to clarify the qualitative characteristics of anxieties among three groups: those who had decided to stay in the United States ("abiding"), those who had decided to return to Japan ("returning"), and those who had not yet decided ("undecided").In the quantitative study, 2,057 questionnaires were distributed, with an overall return rate of 29.7%.The respondents were divided into three groups based on their answers regarding their intentions for the location of their final residence: the United States, Japan, or undecided.We performed the KJ method (affinity diagram) to visualize the differences and commonalities of their anxieties.The following is a summary of the findings: (1) Although most of the respondents are economically advantaged and healthy, "ambiguous" anxieties about aging in New York arise in all three groups; (2) All three groups express uneasiness about supporting themselves after paying medical and nursing care costs; (3) Those in the "abiding" group express loneliness due to the societal relationship vulnerability in New York; (4) Those in the "returning" group worry about the additional burden of undergoing legal procedures and re-adjusting to the current Japanese society.

NIMHD INVESTMENTS IN RESEARCH ON OLDER ADULTS EXPERIENCING HEALTH DISPARITIES: 2018-2022
Aaron Ogletree 1 , Michelle Doose 2 , and Yewande Oladeinde 2 , 1. National Institutes of Health,Bethesda,MAryland,United States,2. National Institutes of Health,Bethesda,Maryland,United States The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) is the nation's leading institute on the health of populations experiencing health disparities.These populations include individuals with low socioeconomic status (SES), those living in rural areas, sexual and gender minorities (SGM), and racial and ethnic minorities.Despite the need to advance research on these populations, particularly in old age when health disparities may be most salient, there has been no analysis of NIMHD funding on older adults to date.This portfolio analysis synthesized and described NIMHD's investments in research on older adults using data from fiscal years 2018 through 2022.The Research, Condition, and Disease Categorization system was used to identify funded projects in the area of Aging; manual review confirmed project eligibility.In-depth project characteristics were extracted and topic areas evaluated.Findings demonstrate that NIMHD funded a total of 98 unique research projects focused on older adults.Of these, 47% focused on the etiology of health disparities, 38% on interventions, and 15% on methods and measurement.The most specified population was racial and ethnic minorities (91%), followed by individuals with low SES (21%), rural older adults (11%), and SGM older adults (8%).Projects focused on diagnostic or clinical care (16%), care coordination (6%), caregivers (6%), and shared decision-making (4%) were limited.Findings highlight opportunities for future research to advance health care and reduce health disparities for the growing proportion of older adults from populations experiencing health disparities.Older adults and people with disabilities have high needs for Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS).Disability status, financial difficulties, and health and well-being are likely not uniformly experienced by all people with LTSS needs.Subgroups of older adults and people with disabilities, such as racial/ethnic minorities, may be at significant risk of experiencing financial difficulties and stress about making ends meet.This study used the first cycle of data (2019-2020) from the California Long-Term Services and Supports (CA-LTSS) survey, merged with select data from the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) (N = 2,030).Multivariate Regressions and Conditional Process Analysis (CPA) were applied to test the hypothesized relationships.Findings show that black/African American and Asian participants with LTSS needs were more likely to have cognitive

RACE/ETHNICITY DISPARITY FOR PEOPLE WITH LTSS NEEDS IN CALIFORNIA: DISABILITY, FINANCE, AND HEALTH AND WELL-BEING Lei
Chen, UCSF Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Study, San Francisco, California, United States